


these new fears (i carry with me)

by jessicamiriamdrew



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Golems, Jewish Folklore - Freeform, KakaIru Mini Bang 2020, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:28:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24860836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jessicamiriamdrew/pseuds/jessicamiriamdrew
Summary: “Golem no jutsu!” Naruto cries out, and Iruka barely lifts his head in time to see the earth crumble around them, mud rising from the cracks.This must be one of the forbidden techniques in the scroll, Iruka thinks, as a clay man forms in front of him. The earth shakes as the creature forms, and Iruka wonders which hand his death will come from.“Protect Iruka-sensei!” Naruto screams, and the creature is rumbling to its feet.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka, Umino Iruka & Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 11
Kudos: 63
Collections: KakaIru Mini Bang 2020





	these new fears (i carry with me)

**Author's Note:**

> helloo this is my late entry to the KakaIru minibang. Rated T for now, but the rating will likely increase later on.

Iruka is bleeding out, aware that he might die. Death, he thinks, won’t be so bad if it means protecting Naruto one final time. Even if fuma shuriken to the back really isn’t the way he’d pick to go out. 

Stealing the Scroll of Sealing from its guarded location - well. Maybe Naruto really might become Hokage one day for all that he can’t seem to graduate. Iruka hates that he may not live to see it.

“Golem no jutsu!” Naruto cries out, and Iruka barely lifts his head in time to see the earth crumble around them, mud rising from the cracks.

This must be one of the forbidden techniques in the scroll, Iruka thinks, as a clay man forms in front of him. The earth shakes as the creature forms, and Iruka wonders which hand his death will come from.

He’s never seen Naruto execute a jutsu flawlessly. He can’t stop trying to focus on the sight of it.

“Protect Iruka-sensei!” Naruto screams, and the creature is rumbling to its feet.

His vision is blurry, but the thuds and stomps aren’t coming for him.

There’s a crunch of bones and a yowl of pain: Iruka prays that it belongs to Mizuki.

*

He comes to with Naruto crying over him.

“That jutsu,” Iruka says. “How did you do it?” Trying to shift his back to see the location of the creature makes pain rip through his body.

Naruto sniffs, so young looking, and Iruka reaches an unsteady hand toward him. “It said in the scroll that it was a jutsu that could protect people, and a Hokage has to be able to protect others, right?”

“Congratulations,” Iruka says, grabbing his hitai ate off his forehead, doing his best to hide the pain on his face. “You graduate.”

He hands it to Naruto, who alternates between staring at it and Iruka. “You...you mean it?”

“You protected me, and the village, while performing a jutsu only performed before by the First. I think that’s better than a graduation exam.”

Fading in and out, Iruka thinks that everything was worth it to protect Naruto.

*

The sterile, beige walls of a hospital room greet him when he awakes. Someone must have slipped him the good stuff, because most of his back is numb.

“Yo,” a voice greets him, and Iruka shifts to see Hatake Kakashi by his bed. Not exactly who Iruka expects to be keeping vigil, given that the most charitable explanation of their entanglement is that they have an on and off hook up status.

He’s considering what fun he and Kakashi could manage under these circumstances of a hospital bed and back injury. 

Maybe it’s the pain medication.

Iruka grunts by way of response, and the answering chuckle makes something inside Iruka warm just a bit.

“Is Naruto okay?” Naruto had seemed fine, but Iruka thinks he’s been knocked out for a few days, and he needs to know.

“He’s in the hallway with one of my ninken,” Kakashi says.

“He’s a good kid,” Iruka says. “He didn’t do anything wrong; all of it was Mizuki.” And Iruka’s foolishness for trusting Mizuki even though pricklings of caution had begun to appear in the last few months.

“You don’t need to worry about Naruto.”

“No one else does,” Iruka insists, the rising of his voice ending in a cough.

Kakashi hands him a glass of water, watching him carefully. Iruka drains the glass, and doesn’t fight when Kakashi refills it for a second round.

“What do you know about the golem no jutsu and golems?” Kakashi asks.

“A forbidden jutsu added to the Scroll of Sealings by the first,” Iruka says, his teacher's voice active by rote. “Although...it isn’t about seals, so I’m not sure why that scroll…”

Kakashi shrugs in his seat. “To deactivate a golem, you erase a letter on its head.”

That doesn’t explain anything to Iruka, even though Kakashi said it like it’s obvious.

Iruka shuffles to sit up, and Kakashi puts a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from further movement.

“You need to rest,” Kakashi says. “We can talk more later.” His hand caresses Iruka’s cheek before he pulls away.

He wants to ask Kakashi to stay, but his eyes are slipping shut before he can form the words.

**Author's Note:**

> if the universe wont give me golem content, i will MAKE the golem content
> 
> if anyone is interested in the concept of golems i'm running with, check out 'the golem of prague' story. this is in naruto verse so it will be very different, but that's the basic mythology.
> 
> the title is from new fears by lights.
> 
> you can find me on tumblr at the same url if you wanna chat!


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